US clears $24B F-35 sale for Saudi Arabia

A US Air Force F-35A Lightning II aircraft is parked on a ramp at sunrise, June 26, 2026. (US Air National Guard photo by Master Sgt. Mary Greenwood)

WASHINGTON — The US State Department has cleared the potential sale of F-35 Joint Strike Fighters to Saudi Arabia, fulfilling a commitment of President Donald Trump despite security concerns over transferring the highly advanced stealth jet to the Gulf kingdom.

In a notice published today , the State Department said Riyadh has been approved to buy up to 48 F-35As — the conventional takeoff and landing variant of the fighter — along with 49 F135 engines in a deal valued at up to $24.3 billion. The potential sale would include support equipment and training, among other items.

The F-35 is manufactured by Lockheed Martin, and the jet’s engine is made by RTX subsidiary Pratt & Whitney. The two companies did not respond to a request for comment by press time.

The terms of the deal are not final, as prices and quantities can fluctuate during negotiations. The State Department’s notice additionally tees up a 30-day review period for Congress, which has the power to block the sale.

While most arms deals are largely uncontroversial on Capitol Hill, the sale of F-35s to Saudi Arabia has drawn much greater scrutiny. Following a report in the New York Times this week that US intelligence has warned the sale of the stealth fighters to Riyadh could give Beijing access to the jet’s highly sensitive technology, some lawmakers have publicly raised concerns about the deal. It’s unclear, however, if enough legislators oppose the deal to block it.

Trump last year pledged to sell the stealth fighters to Saudi Arabia as part of a so-called Strategic Defense Agreement, and has floated similar offers for other prospective customers like India and Turkey — the latter of whom was ejected from the F-35 program after acquiring a Russian S-400 air defense system.

The approval would permit Saudi Arabia entry into an exclusive club of 20 international operators, including the US, of the only fifth-generation Western stealth fighter currently in production. It would also be a major coup against other Gulf countries like the United Arab Emirates who have similarly expressed interest in acquiring the fighter.

The sale comes at a critical time for Riyadh and the Gulf as a whole. Conflict with Iran has drawn Saudi Arabia, which hosts US bases, into open conflict with Tehran. The war has also dented oil exports key to Riyadh’s economy, including attacks by Iranian proxies on a critical Saudi oil pipeline that has now been taken offline .

The F-35 has been used heavily by the United States and Israel during the war. One Air Force F-35A was reportedly hit by ground fire after flying combat missions over Iran, though the pilot managed to land safely.

It’s not clear how the State Department assessed the sale, including congressional requirements for Israel to retain a “qualitative military edge” over its regional neighbors. The department’s notice, for its part, says the sale “will not alter the military balance in the region.”

The proposed F-35 sale for Saudi Arabia “will support the foreign policy and national security objectives of the United States by improving the security of a major non-NATO ally that is a force for political stability and economic progress in the Gulf region,” the State Department’s notice says.

2026年6月26日日出时分，一架美国空军F-35A“闪电II”战斗机停在停机坪上。（美国空军国民警卫队照片，摄影：玛丽·格林伍德中士）

华盛顿——尽管对将这款高度先进的隐形战机转让给海湾王国存在安全担忧，但美国国务院已批准向沙特阿拉伯出售F-35联合攻击战斗机，履行了唐纳德·特朗普总统的承诺。

美国国务院今天发布公告称，已批准利雅得购买至多48架F-35A战斗机（该型战斗机的常规起降版本）以及49台F135发动机，交易总额最高可达243亿美元。潜在的军售项目还包括配套设备和培训等。

F-35战斗机由洛克希德·马丁公司制造，其发动机由RTX公司的子公司普惠公司生产。截至发稿时，两家公司均未回复置评请求。

由于价格和数量在谈判过程中可能出现波动，因此交易条款尚未最终确定。此外，国务院的通知还规定国会将对此进行为期30天的审查，国会有权阻止这笔交易。

虽然大多数军售案在国会山都鲜少引发争议，但向沙特阿拉伯出售F-35战机却引起了更多关注。本周《纽约时报》报道称，美国情报部门警告称，向利雅得出售隐形战机可能使北京获得该战机的高度敏感技术。此后，一些议员公开表达了对这笔交易的担忧。然而，目前尚不清楚反对该交易的议员人数是否足以阻止其通过。

特朗普去年承诺向沙特阿拉伯出售隐形战斗机，作为所谓的战略防御协议的一部分，并且还向印度和土耳其等其他潜在客户提出了类似的提议——土耳其在购买俄罗斯S-400防空系统后被踢出了F-35项目。

这项批准将使沙特阿拉伯加入由包括美国在内的20个国际用户组成的精英俱乐部，成为目前唯一在产的第五代西方隐形战斗机的用户。对于其他同样对采购该型战斗机表示出兴趣的海湾国家（例如阿联酋）而言，这将是一次重大胜利。

此次军售对利雅得乃至整个海湾地区而言都至关重要。与伊朗的冲突已将沙特阿拉伯（美国军事基地所在地）拖入与德黑兰的公开对抗。这场战争也重创了对利雅得经济至关重要的石油出口，其中包括伊朗代理人对一条关键的沙特输油管道的袭击，该管道目前已被切断。

在战争期间，美国和以色列都大量使用了F-35战斗机。据报道，一架美国空军的F-35A战斗机在执行伊朗上空作战任务后遭到地面火力击中，但飞行员成功安全着陆。

目前尚不清楚美国国务院如何评估这笔军售，包括国会要求以色列保持对地区邻国的“军事优势”的要求。国务院的声明则称，这笔军售“不会改变该地区的军事平衡”。

美国国务院的通知称，拟议向沙特阿拉伯出售F-35战斗机“将通过提高一个重要的非北约盟友的安全，支持美国的外交政策和国家安全目标。该盟友是海湾地区政治稳定和经济发展的推动力量。”